1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the field of artificial Christmas trees and in particular to an artificial Christmas tree having a plurality of detachable or removable branches each of which includes one or more electrical lamps integrally attached thereto.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The decorated evergreen tree has long been a symbol of the Christmas holiday season. In recent years, the artificial "Christmas tree" has been gaining popularity. However, even with artificial Christmas trees, the lights for illuminating the tree still come in multi-lamp strings which are wound around the tree in some regular or irregular patterns. Normally the light strings are interweaved between the branches to give the illumination a sense of depth. The wires which interconnect the individual lamps are often difficult to conceal and give an objectional appearance to the tree.
One early attempt to eliminate the wires was presented by H. F. Waters in U.S. Pat. No. 2,121,460. Waters disclosed a wireless system in which low pressure lamps were excited by high frequency radio waves emitted from a transmitter at the base of the tree.
Alternatively, Hunt, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,735,117, discloses an artificial tree in which the wires and sockets for the lamps are molded directly into the trunk and branches of an artificial tree. The branches of Hunt's Christmas tree are formed integral with the trunk which prohibits the tree from being disassembled for storage. Further, the integral structure would be very difficult and expensive to manufacture. This problem is partially overcome by Lu in U.S. Pat. No. 3,603,780. The branches of Lu's tree are pivotally mounted to the trunk so that they may be folded for storage. The electrical wires in the individual branches remain integral with the electrical wires in the trunk.
The invention is an artificial Christmas tree in which the individual branches with their integral wires and lamp sockets can be disconnected from the trunk for separate and compact storage.